Cab Vouchers

[Kidrn911]

Just wondering how many or your hospitals give out cab vouchers to the families when they cry they have no way home?

I work at a peds facility and often we people come in, in the middle of the night for something stupid like a rash that has been there for 3 weeks, they then claim they have no way home.

Are actually required to provide them a way home after discharge? I heard adult hospitals don't usually do this, I doubt that.

Do you give outvery many vouchers?

[gonzo1, ASN, RN]

we do not give cab vouchers any more. It cost way too much. Now we do bus passes. Which of course only works during the day when the buses run.

I don't understand how some of these people think. Why would they think they can bring a 2 y/o in at 3 am for a 2 week old rash. But we see this stupid stuff on a daily basis.

They have such a sense of entitlement. And the first thing they ask for when they hit the bed is food. For the whole family.

They always say "my friend told me you would give me a taxi voucher". One day the taxi driver told the pt to come back in and ask for a voucher.

I must remember to concentrate on the entertainment factor---entertainment---entertainment--so I don't get frustrated.

[Altra, BSN, RN]

We give bus passes only.

I agree w/Gonzo's post above -- the sense of entitlement is stunning.

[sumas8]

We are a large suburban trauma center. We actually have a system/forms for taxi vouchers. I'm not sure if it comes out of the ED or hosp. budget. But you are right about people asking for them, or their friend got one, etc. As the night charge nurse, I'm the one who approves them. If someone was brought in by ambulance for MVA or something and truly doesn't have a ride at 4 am, I don't mind. But for the majority of the 'rashes', etc. its a different story. First I speak to the pt. to ask about getting home, if they have money for cab, etc.

Then often I tell them they can wait in the waiting room until 9 am when the social worker comes in= it's remarkable how many of them suddenly find a ride!

Occasionally we have a person whose spouse doesn't drive at night, or cant get a ride till the am for childcare or other reasons- if they are a legit person, I'll let them sleep on an unused stretcher somewhere.

And to answer your question, I don't think any hospital has an obligation to get people home, except obviously social work issues/pts.

When you're 22 yo and got dropped off because you have a toothache,

its not my problem how you get home. The sense of entitlement is truly amazing, we need to work hard to dispel that, esp w. pts who have been given a voucher in the past.

[nuangel1, BSN, RN]

no vouchers at all.no bus passes nothing .the pt is responsible for finding a ride home .unless there is a medical need for med transport .then dr has a specific form to sign and ambulance .med service is called.

[EDValerieRN, ASN, RN]

A nurse that I work with put it this way: People don't go to the grocery store and demand the clerk give them a ride... why would they think they can do it in a hospital?

We give them out, and I HATE it. People abuse it sooo much. We had one guy who lived across town, and would call EMS to bring him to us, get discharged, and get a cab to his girlfriend's house a few blocks away. He got away with it for about a year before someone noticed his home address wasn't the voucher address. Ugh.

Another guy was homeless, and got a cab to go to the Circle K two miles away... he lived behind it. Seriously.

I'm really stingy with them, and try to only give them to people who were traumas, or who came in for a legitimate reason and really don't have a ride home. Otherwise, they can hang in the waiting room until the busses run.

[ERRNTraveler, RN]

I don't mind giving them out if the patient truly needs it- like if they came in by EMS because they were in an MVC & their car was totaled, or, like last night, when I had a little old lady come in with chest pain by EMS- she doesn't drive, and she called her son, but he was drunk- wasn't going to send her home with her drunk son driving! I don't mind it then, but I also agree that waaaay too many people abuse it!

[wizap]

Rural MT nurse here... we have no public transportation in our community, no Bus passes...No taxi vouchers. We do not have taxi's or buses. Sometimes Pastors will drive Patients home. Sometimes staff will drive them home at change of shift.

[ERRNTraveler, RN]

Rural MT nurse here... we have no public transportation in our community, no Bus passes...No taxi vouchers. We do not have taxi's or buses. Sometimes Pastors will drive Patients home. Sometimes staff will drive them home at change of shift.

WOW- Maybe things are different in a small town where everyone knows everyone else, but I would NEVER let a patient into my car to drive them home- WAAAAY too dangerous!

[wizap]

WOW- Maybe things are different in a small town where everyone knows everyone else, but I would NEVER let a patient into my car to drive them home- WAAAAY too dangerous!

I would feel the same in a city I am sure. Here my patients are neighbors and sometimes friends, and sometimes the town drunk.....

[aberrn]

As one ER Doc I worked with said,"There's never any bones outside the ER" They always find a ride..

[JBudd, MSN]

Had a guy with 13 visits so far this year, c/o gout in the big toe. He drove himself in, and was furious that he waited for 4 hours to get seen, and we expected him to accept two Lortab to take home so he could drive, because that would be another hour before he got relief! He demanded a shot and a taxi voucher because that is what we've done before. Every time! Claims he had no money to fill the script, how did we think he could pay for a taxi?

Ah, you knew you couldn't drive home after a shot, why the sam hill did you not bring a driver with you? The same one that would have to bring you back the next day to pick up your truck?

Or the mother/son team who arrive by ambulance and demand food & voucher before they've finished registering which ever one is getting seen this time.